LARAMIE — The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has confirmed chronic wasting disease in an adult bull moose in Moose Hunt Area 45, east of Laramie, in the Pilot Hill area. Game and Fish continues to notify the public of new areas where CWD is detected.

The Game and Fish’s Wildlife Health Laboratory and the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory confirmed the disease in the moose. On Sept. 2, a member of the public reported the moose to the department after observing the animal suddenly collapse and die. Game and Fish Veterinary Services performed a field necropsy, which revealed the animal to be in poor body condition with evidence of a possible bacterial infection. Additional diagnostic tests are underway to learn more about the animal's overall health before its death.

This marks the second time CWD has been detected in a free-ranging moose in Wyoming. The state’s first documented case of CWD in a moose occurred in 2008 in Moose Hunt Area 23 near Bedford.

While CWD detections in moose are rare, the disease has been detected in deer and elk within the same geographic footprint. Moose Hunt Area 45 overlaps with Elk Hunt Area 6, where CWD was first detected in 1999, and Deer Hunt Area 60, where the disease was first documented in mule deer in 1998.

To help monitor the disease, Game and Fish strongly encourages hunters who harvest a moose in Moose Hunt Area 45 this season to have their animal tested.

Hunters can find detailed instructions on collecting and submitting samples, the testing process and how results are communicated on the Game and Fish website. 

-WGFD-